Off-duty St. Paul firefighter identified as fatal shooting victim

Police say one man is dead after a shooting occurred in St. Paul Monday night.

According to Steve Linders, with the St. Paul Police Department, officers were called at about 8:30 p.m. to the 1700 block of Ivy Avenue East on a report of a man being shot in the stomach.

Advertisement

When officers arrived, they found the victim, identified as Thomas R. Harrigan, 36, had suffered a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Linders said Harrigan was taken to Regions Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. Police said the shooting happened in his home.

Thomas R. Harrigan

St. Paul Firefighters Local 21 said Harrigan was a firefighter serving the city's east side.

"We're struggling to get through it, but we'll keep working hard and be there for his family. We are dealing with a lot of grief and shock," Captain Jeramiah Melquist said.

Harrigan joined the fire department in September 2013. Before that, he served as a paramedic in the Minnesota National Guard and is an Army Veteran who served overseas in Iraq. Fellow firefighters described him as selfless and on a mission to help lift the burden of others.

"He loved the job, being a firefighter meant everything to him," said Melquist.

No arrests have been made. According to Linders, Harrigan and the gunman knew each other somehow and the shooting wasn't random. This is the 15th homicide in the city this year.

Although Harrigan's death was off-duty, the Firefighter's Union said he will receive full honors at his funeral which is being planned.